# Mini Split Installation in North Portland

> Mini split installation in North Portland: getting off oil heat with the tank handled, PGE or Pacific Power by address, and Kenton and Piedmont district rules.

URL: https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/service-areas/north-portland/

Service area, Oregon

Mini split installation in North Portland: getting off oil heat with the tank handled, PGE or Pacific Power by address, and Kenton and Piedmont district rules.

(971) 458-4515

Last Updated: November 12, 2026

2.7%

of North Portland homes heat with fuel oil, the highest share of any Portland district (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year)

705 / 139

North Portland heat-pump permits in PGE and Pacific Power territory over three years (City of Portland permit records)

Permits

City of Portland Permitting & Development

Electric utility

PGE (most) and Pacific Power (Piedmont side)

## Rooms that need help in North Portland

### An oil furnace in the basement

North Portland has the highest share of oil heat in the city. The heads go in first; the furnace and tank come out after.

### Not sure which utility you're on

The PGE and Pacific Power line runs through the district. It changes the running-cost answer, so we check your address.

### A house in Kenton or Piedmont

Both are conservation districts. An outdoor unit behind the front facade and line sets off the street side keep the job simple.

## Off oil, and onto a heat pump

North Portland has the highest share of oil-heated homes in Portland: 2.7%, about 820 households, against 1.8% citywide.

If your house is one of them, [Firlands Portland Mini Splits](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/) plans the switch as one job. The heads go in and run first, the oil furnace comes out, and the buried tank is pumped and decommissioned by a DEQ-licensed provider we schedule for the same week.

### Why the order matters

- the house is never without heat while the furnace comes out
- the oil line isn’t cut while oil is still in the ground
- you end with the tank provider’s certificate, which a buyer will ask for

Project

## Inside a St. Johns oil-to-ductless conversion

### The problem

The oil furnace in the basement is old and loud, each tank fill costs more than the last, and the house has no cooling. The owner wants off oil completely.

### The house

Living and dining run together on the main floor next to one bedroom; two rooms under the roof share the upstairs. The oil tank is buried in the side yard, and the house's old ducts are small, leaky and run through a cramped basement.

### What we decide, and why

Three heads replace the furnace entirely: 15,000 BTU in the living and dining room, 12,000 for the upstairs rooms, which stay open to each other, and 9,000 in the main-floor bedroom. All are cold-climate models sized for Portland's 24°F design low. The bathroom keeps the small electric wall heater it already has. The owner chooses ductless over reusing the old ducts; a ducted central heat pump is a different job.

### The work

The heads go in first and run for a day before the furnace comes out, so the house is never without heat. We disconnect and remove the furnace, its oil line and flue pipe, and seal the chimney opening. A new 240-volt circuit runs to the outdoor unit on a pad at the back of the house. Then the tank: we schedule a DEQ-licensed heating oil tank provider to pump it out and decommission it in place.

Oregon law requires a heating oil tank to be emptied when the house stops using it, and it's illegal to disconnect one without pumping it out. Lining the tank work up with the furnace removal means the oil line is never cut while oil is still in the ground.

### What it changes

No oil deliveries, heat and cooling in every main room, and the tank provider's certification paperwork for the owner to keep for a future sale.

Location

St. Johns, North Portland

House

1930s one-and-a-half-story, about 1,400 square feet, oil furnace and a buried oil tank

Equipment

Three heads (15,000, 12,000 and 9,000 BTU) on one 36,000 BTU cold-climate outdoor unit

Price

$16,200, permits and furnace removal included; tank work priced by the tank provider

Time on site

3 days after permits, plus one day for the tank work

## Which utility is your house on?

North Portland is the one district split between Portland’s two electric utilities. Of 844 heat-pump permits over three years, 705 were in PGE territory and 139 in Pacific Power’s, around Piedmont.

The heads and the job are the same either way. The running cost isn’t.

| Your utility | Heat pump matches a 95% gas furnace at about | Off-peak option |
| --- | --- | --- |
| PGE | COP 2.8 | Time-of-day plan with cheaper off-peak hours |
| Pacific Power | COP 2.3 | Time-of-use plan, on-peak 5 to 9 p.m. |

Against oil the comparison works from your own delivery bills, because Oregon heating-oil prices aren’t published as a local series. [Mini split electric bill](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-electric-bill/) shows how we do the arithmetic.

## Kenton and Piedmont conservation districts

Kenton and Piedmont are conservation districts, and Kenton’s commercial strip on Denver Avenue is a historic district. A mini split in either neighborhood rarely needs review.

### What keeps it out of review

The zoning code exempts a ground-mounted outdoor unit no more than five feet in width, length and height, set no closer to the street than the street-facing facade. Line sets and conduit stay off street-facing walls, six inches across or less, in a matte or painted finish.

Kenton and Piedmont houses mostly have side yards or a back porch where that works. We check the district map for your address on the first visit, and [mini split placement](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-placement/) shows the mounting options.

## Sizing heads to replace the furnace completely

When a mini split replaces oil instead of supplementing it, the heads carry the whole house on the coldest night, so we size them for that.

Multnomah County’s winter design low is 24°F, and Portland’s airport hit 15°F on January 13, 2024. We size each head to its room’s load at the design low and check the outdoor unit’s published output below it.

### Cold-climate units and backup

- cold-climate outdoor units for every head that heats a main room
- a small existing electric heater left in a bathroom, where there is one
- no second fuel kept just in case; the point of the job is to be off oil

[Do mini splits work in cold weather?](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/do-mini-splits-work-in-cold-weather/) explains low-temperature capacity.

## Cooling you never had with oil

An oil furnace never cooled anything, so most North Portland conversions are also the first air conditioning the house has had.

That matters more than it used to. Portland’s airport reached 116°F on June 28, 2021, and most North Portland houses then had a window unit at best.

### Heads that do both jobs

Every head we install heats and cools, so the bedrooms under the roof get the same treatment in August as the living room gets in January. We set each head to throw air along the room rather than straight at a bed or a desk.

## Basements on the peninsula

Most North Portland houses from the 1910s to the 1940s sit over a full or daylight basement, where the oil furnace and the panel live.

Once the furnace is gone, that basement loses the stray heat it used to get.

- **If you use it,** a floor console or a small wall head on the same outdoor unit keeps it dry and usable. [Basement mini split installation](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/basement-mini-split-installation/) covers the drain, which usually needs a pump below grade.
- **If it’s storage,** we leave it unheated and cap the old ducts so they don’t pull cold air into the floors above.

## How an oil conversion runs, week by week

A North Portland oil conversion takes longer than a plain install because three trades touch it. Here’s the usual order.

1. **The visit.** We measure every room, find the tank’s fill and vent pipes, and look at the panel and the chimney.
2. **Permits.** The city’s mechanical and electrical permits are issued before anything is cut.
3. **Heads and outdoor unit.** Line sets, drains and the new circuit go in; every line set holds a nitrogen pressure test and a vacuum below 500 microns before the refrigerant is released.
4. **A day of running.** The heads heat the house on their own while the furnace is still in place.
5. **Furnace out.** We remove the furnace, the oil line and the flue pipe, and seal the chimney opening.
6. **Tank day.** The tank provider pumps the tank and decommissions it, and sends you the certification.
7. **The final inspection,** with the test readings handed over on paper.

[Oil heat to mini split](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/oil-heat-to-mini-split/) covers the tank options in more depth.

## Permits, fees and the final

The City of Portland issues the mechanical and electrical permits here, and a full conversion may also need a permit for removing the furnace and oil line.

The city’s fees for a typical single-zone install run about $187 to $382 with the state surcharge, more for a multi-zone system. They’re in our price. We schedule each inspection, hand you the pressure-test and vacuum readings on paper, and close the job with the final.

## What it costs, and the incentives

Firlands’ typical range for one head is $4,000 to $8,500, for two heads $6,500 to $12,000, and for three or four $9,000 to $18,000 and up.

An oil house usually needs three heads or more, because the heads become the only heat. If the panel is an older 100-amp service, an upgrade typically runs $2,500 to $6,000. [Mini split rebates in Oregon](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-rebates-oregon/) lists what may apply; Energy Trust’s ductless offer is tied to replacing electric heat, not oil.

## St. Johns to Arbor Lodge

North Portland runs from bungalow blocks to postwar ranches, and the jobs follow.

- **St. Johns, Cathedral Park and University Park.** 1910s to 1930s houses, the oil conversions and the [whole-house systems](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/whole-house-mini-split/).
- **Kenton and Portsmouth.** Bungalows and cottages where two or three heads on a [single outdoor unit](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/single-zone-vs-multi-zone-mini-split/) cover the house.
- **Arbor Lodge, Overlook and Humboldt.** Two-story houses with ducts downstairs, where a [multi-zone system](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/multi-zone-mini-split-installation/) goes upstairs.

## Services in North Portland

- [Service**Oil heat to mini split** Replacing oil heat with a mini split: ductless heads sized for winter, the furnace out, and the buried tank handled under DEQ's rules.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/oil-heat-to-mini-split/)
- [Service**Multi-zone installation** Multi zone mini split installation: two to five rooms on one outdoor unit, each head sized to its own room and set to its own temperature.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/multi-zone-mini-split-installation/)
- [Service**Whole-house systems** Whole house mini split installation: every room heated and cooled by ductless heads, planned as one system with a winter backup plan.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/whole-house-mini-split/)
- [Service**Basement** A basement mini split install for a family room, office or basement unit: heat, cooling, drier air and a drain that works below grade.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/basement-mini-split-installation/)
- [Service**Single-zone installation** Single zone mini split installation: one indoor head and one outdoor unit for the room the furnace never reaches, sized to that room.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/single-zone-mini-split-installation/)

## How a job usually runs in North Portland

### The call

You tell us the rooms and send a few photos; we give a rough range.

### The visit

We measure each room, look at the walls, the panel and where the outdoor unit can go.

### The estimate

A written estimate: each head, the line-set route, drains, circuit, permits and price.

### Install and handover

Pressure test, vacuum, startup, a walk-through, and the permits closed out.

## Neighborhoods, landmarks and routes

- St. Johns
- Kenton
- Portsmouth
- Piedmont
- Overlook
- Arbor Lodge
- University Park
- Cathedral Park
- Humboldt
- Boise

### Landmarks

- St. Johns Bridge
- Cathedral Park
- Columbia Park
- University of Portland
- Peninsula Park Rose Garden
- Kenton's Paul Bunyan statue

### Getting around

- N Lombard Street east-west
- N Interstate Avenue and the MAX Yellow Line
- I-5 along the east edge
- N Willamette Boulevard along the bluff
- N Columbia Boulevard

[Open North Portland, Oregon in Google Maps](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=North%20Portland%2C%20Oregon)

## North Portland: questions

### What does an oil-to-mini-split conversion cost in North Portland?

Firlands' typical range for three or four heads on one outdoor unit is $9,000 to $18,000 and up, and five heads or more $15,000 to $30,000 and up. Furnace removal goes on our estimate; the tank work is priced by the tank provider. City of Portland permit fees are included.

### Do I have to deal with my buried oil tank when I switch to a mini split?

Yes. Oregon law requires a heating oil tank to be emptied once the house stops using it, and it's illegal to disconnect one without pumping it out. Anyone you hire for the tank must be a DEQ-licensed heating oil tank provider.

### Is my North Portland house on PGE or Pacific Power?

Most of North Portland is PGE. The Piedmont side, toward the northeast corner of the district, is Pacific Power. Your bill says which, and we check the address before working out running costs.

### Does Kenton's conservation district restrict where the outdoor unit goes?

Only outside the zoning code's exemptions. A ground unit no more than five feet in each dimension, set no closer to the street than the front facade, with line sets off street-facing walls, needs no historic review in Kenton or Piedmont.

### Does Energy Trust pay an incentive when a mini split replaces oil heat?

Energy Trust of Oregon's ductless offer is for systems that replace electric resistance heat in the main living space, so an oil-heated house doesn't qualify for that one. If part of the house runs on baseboards, those rooms may. We check what applies at the visit.

## Nearby service areas

- [Oregon**Northeast Portland** Mini split installation in Northeast Portland: upstairs rooms in bungalows and foursquares with no ducts, Pacific Power rates, and Irvington's unit rules.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/service-areas/northeast-portland/)
- [Washington**Vancouver** Mini split installation in Vancouver, WA: baseboards and wall heaters replaced room by room, City of Vancouver permits, and the Clark Public Utilities rebate.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/service-areas/vancouver-wa/)
- [Washington**Minnehaha** Mini split installation in Minnehaha, WA: heat pumps for ceiling-cable and baseboard homes, Clark County and L&I permits, and the $900 utility ductless rebate.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/service-areas/minnehaha-wa/)

## Guides for houses in North Portland

- [Learn**How much will a mini split add to my electric bill?** Running costs worked out from PGE, Pacific Power and NW Natural rates, against baseboards and a gas furnace.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-electric-bill/)
- [Learn**Where should a mini split go?** Head placement inside, the outdoor unit outside, and the Portland rules and weather that decide both.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-placement/)
- [Learn**Do mini splits work in cold weather?** Portland's winters are mild with sharp exceptions: freezing rain, an east wind and a few nights in the teens.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/do-mini-splits-work-in-cold-weather/)
- [Learn**What mini split rebates are available in Oregon?** What Energy Trust pays, which homes qualify, how state and city programs work, and what's changed for the federal credit.](https://firlandsportlandminisplits.com/guide/mini-split-rebates-oregon/)

## Get an estimate in North Portland

Tell us which rooms aren't working and where the house is in North Portland.

(971) 458-4515